Personal Narrative: My First Class At Visceral Dance Center

It seems like I have been waiting years for my letter to come in the mail. Just last month I sent out my application to see if I can get into Juilliard School of Dance, in New York. I live in Springfield, Massachusetts. Juilliard is where only pro dancers, the best of the best, the real shining stars can get into. Ballet has been my passion since I could walk. If I don’t get in, my life is over! All I want to do in life is perform, not sitting down having to fill out paperwork the whole day in a crowded office, or stuck behind a fryer, serving greasy, crusty food to ungrateful customers. Ballet is my escape from that.

I walked on stage, my head pounding and my knees shaking. I looked to the audience, but bright, glaring lights blocked their faces. As the music started playing, I forced a smile onto my face. I can usually smile naturally, but tonight was different.

“Gold Dusters! USA! Gold Dusters! USA!” I was just getting ready to go on the Timberwolves’ floor for my second time that day; We had made the finals and we were in search for the medal at the end. It was my second year at the state tournament; I was 15. I was underground, underneath the stadium, listening to the stomping, the cheering, the screaming, and the many hands clapping, as they waited for our team to come out to dance. I could feel my blood pumping through my veins. I could feel my heart beating out of my chest.

In each environment within the dance community, I have accumulated friends, a broader vocabulary, and a shared, strong dedication to the art. I do not remember a lot about that first studio with the scary instructor, but it was my gateway into a community that is linked together by a common language, goal, and love for

On the Saturday morning that the team was announced, I was wracked with fear. I was participating in a rehearsal for a dance competition with another team during the hours leading up to the time that the list was going to be posted. Trying to get through that rehearsal was nearly impossible as my attention was more focused on what color nail polish would best match my new Chiefettes shirt that I would be wearing to school on Monday. Once my mother and sister arrived to pick me up from the studio, I shook nervously in the back seat, sending messages to my other friends, waiting to find out the news. Both my mother and my sister remained silent, but I knew that they were praying just like I was that I would see my number on that list. As we

For the past six years, I have been dancing at Shirley Matta Dance Academy. I have been taught many dances of different variety such as jazz, tap, ballet, lyrical, contemporary, etc. The studio has recently begun offering Pointe classes, which I also attend. In addition to attending the studio, I also assist in teaching dance and gymnastics classes there. This has been an experience that I will never forget, especially since I spend most of my time at the dance studio. It has helped me in so many ways. Not only have I improved immensely as a dancer, my communication and leadership skills have skyrocketed as well. In fact, every Tuesday, I currently teach ballet to a group of about fifteen girls between the ages of 7-10 year all by myself. In

The year is 1923. There is this very small, quiet, and amazing town in Ohio called Otway. In this town there is a small white two story house with a beautiful garden as a backyard. In this house lives a 12 year old brunette haired girl named Myronetta June.

Who all can say that they have danced on national television at Walt Disney World? Well now, I can say that I did. I have been on many trips to Disney World but this one was by far the best because I got to be there with my dance team. In a small town like Saltillo it is very rare that any type of athletic team goes and wins state competitions or makes it all the way to a national level but we did. The Saltillo High School dance team of 2014 was the first team to ever go beyond a state competition and do anything on a national level. It was a huge honor for all of us to represent our school in the way we did. From arriving to Disney’s ESPN Resort, to getting ready then preforming was an overall great experience for all of us.

An extracurricular activity that I have had the pleasure to take part in for the past five years is the Greenwood College School dance team. Starting off as a new and young member of the team, I often faded in the background and followed the instruction of senior students, showing up to practice and doing the dances as told. During my first two years, in addition to being in various senior choreographed routines, I choreographed a dance alongside girls in my grade, an experience that gave me a basis of teamwork skills including compromise, commitment, open mindedness, reliability and creativity. After I became an experienced member of the team, the coach offered me a position as the team coordinator which I happily accepted. For the past two

These past two years have been crammed with so much new knowledge and understanding of dance that I could never be taught at a studio, for example, I have been told many times about my neck being pushed forward if I can recall I was called “turtleneck” but that's beside the point just knowing that I started to notice other things that aren’t correct with myself and I have been able to start fixing it which improved the quality of my dancing tremendously.

“Don’t get your hopes up, you're not good enough Mia, you're never going to make it.” It was a warm muggy night, the air still as I layed in my bed unable to sleep. The next morning the letter was supposed to come, to tell me if I got the audition for the New York City Ballet Company. I didn’t expect to get the audition and wasn't sure I really wanted it in the first place.

Since the early age of four, I have been mesmerized by classical ballet. Every week, I watched my dance teacher display her beautiful skills during class, and I hoped that I could dance as well as her someday. As my love for ballet continued to grow, my opportunities widened. In the fall of 2013, I became a member of the dance ensemble at the dance studio I attend. When I joined the Pointe Academy Dance Ensemble, my position at the dance studio shifted from being a student dancing in the back of the room, to a dancer who learned how to teach others and set a good example for younger students. To me, being a role model and using acquired experience to inspire and guide others is leadership. My dance ensemble has been my most meaningful leadership experience because it is the source of where I have become a leader.

On April 13th, I attended San Francisco Ballet’s Program 07, Made For San Francisco. The San Francisco Ballet is notorious for their classical full length ballet productions, but let me tell you, they are equally as amazing in a more contemporary setting. This specific triple bill showcase was made of Trio, Ghost In The Machine, and Within The Golden Hour. The first piece was choreographed by Helgi Tomasson, the company’s own artistic director, and is world renowned classical ballet dancer of his generation. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence, was played by the orchestra and the notes of the music carried each dancer across the stage. It blended so well with the dancing, it seemed as if it were made for the movements. Crisp yet

Twelve years doing the same thing, and it never gets boring. Dedication, commitment, and perseverance are are the most important qualities to achieve any dream. Becoming a ballerina is no exception. Natural abilities help the process, but not having them makes it even more possible. Some people are born to succeed, naturally do good, but they never have to work for their dreams. Me on the other hand I learned from a very young age I was not like them, I had to have passion to succeed.

Listening to mainstream and pop clichés on the radio sometimes makes me seasick. So when Walk the Moon released a single reminiscing that disco feeling although I haven’t experienced disco yet, joy flows through my veins cause “Shut Up and Dance” is definitely our song of the summer.